Spread The Word!

Blinding Lights and No Nights in Hollywood

Turn down the lights on Lackawanna! We are very happy that our City Government has taken steps to improve safety on Lackawanna Street. However, the street lamps are far too bright for a residential neighborhood. The goal of the project was to light the sidewalks, not to give us permanent daylight! Currently, the project creates light pollution that is negatively impacting our homes and properties. We are very concerned about the devaluation of our properties as a result. We want our City Government to take immediate action to turn the lights down to a more appropriate level. Please readjust the lights so we can live in a neighborhood, not a runway.

4 years agoComments:
I think the City can reach a compromise by lowering the intensity of lights down while keeping the street safe for pedestrians. (< a href = 'http://rethinkcollegepark.net/blog/2010/4695/'>More here</a>)

Diana Claburn, United States

4 years agoComments:
-

John Krouse, United States

4 years agoComments:
The new lightposts are very attractive and very close together, but the bulbs are much too bright!
With such close spacing, I believe the brightness of the bulbs could be reduced by at least 50% without sacrificing lighting effectiveness or safety.
Please also consider removing the old overhead lights. There is really no reason to have redundant street lamps.
By reducing the wattage and eliminating the overhead lights, the annual electric bill should be much lower, too.

Kennis A. Termini, United States

4 years agoComments:
I would like to see that the lights be dimmed. Almost looks like a airport runway.

Jeanne Pekny, United States

4 years agoComments:
While I am very happy with the installation of the lights and absolutely want them to remain, I agree that they are a little too bright. I believe that these lights are crucial in our neighborhood because of the crime that has increased over the years due to metro. As such, these lights are very important for safety reasons. Last summer my son was stopped in the neighborhood and held up at gunpoint, his phone and money was stolen. I believe because he cooperated and gave the men what they wanted and he was fortunate enough to have money on him - he was not injured further. Had our lights been on then, maybe it would not have happened at all. Please turn them down, but do not remove them.

Matthew Byrd, United States

4 years agoComments:
I do not live on Lackawanna, but I do drive on it daily. These lights are having a negative impact on vehicle and bicycle safety. The new streetlights along Lackawanna are so bright, you cannot read the street signs, because the lights are shining directly into the driver's line-of-sight. There is an issue of being less-aware of oncoming headlights when turning onto Lackawanna, because the intensity and frequency of the streetlights is disorienting. Perversely, bicycles are rendered all but invisible, because reflectors and meager headlamps are no match for the streetlights, themselves. While these lights may help deter crime, this was not their primary intent, and they are posing safety issues of their own. The intensity of these lights is more suited to a commercial/retail environment, than a residential one. I urge the city to explore ways to lower the lumens-output of these devices, or to simply cut the power to them, until we can determine an acceptable compromise.